What makes curly hair so rebellious? Any curly-haired girl will tell you that keeping her coils tamed is an uphill battle. Blame it on the weather, blame it on the weekend, blame it on fate, but the true culprit here is your…follicles?
As it turns out, the shape of your follicle plays a key role in the overall texture of your curly hair. By taking proper care of your follicles, you can have your curls living their best life in no time.
But how do you keep those follicles in line? The answer is hair plopping.
But what the heck is hair plopping? Well, it’s the single best thing you can do for your follicles when you’re allowing your curly hair to dry. When you’re good to your follicles, they’ll be good to you.
Read on to learn more about hair plopping.
What is “Plopping Hair”?
Before we talk about hair plopping, let’s address the number one enemy of your follicles: your bath towel.
When you towel-dry your hair, the rough texture does serious damage to your curls, leading to frizz and general “wonkiness” in shape.
Your hairdryer is also to blame: heat can permanently damage the shape of your curls and lead to even more frizz. In other words, heat is definitely not a friend of your follicles.
Enter hair plopping, the heat-free and follicle-friendly solution to drying your curls. If you’re looking for shininess and definition in your curls, you won’t be disappointed by the results.
Supplies Needed for Hair Plopping
One of the best parts about hair plopping is this: you don’t need a whole arsenal of expensive products to do it. In fact, you probably already have the necessary supplies in your home.
For hair plopping, you will need these supplies:
- Cotton long-sleeved T-shirt or microfiber hair towel
- Your favorite curly hair product (optional)
Yes, that’s really all you need!
Hair Plopping: Your Step-By-Step Guide
As mentioned before, you’ll be using hair plopping as an alternative to wrapping a towel around your hair or towel-drying it in general. Again, keep that bath towel AWAY from those curls! You’ll thank us later.
The secret for how to plop hair is using a smoother, gentler material that won’t rough up your hair follicles. There are special hair towels designed especially for it if you’re looking to maximize your hair plopping potential.
Here’s a step-by-step guide on hair plopping:
- Remove excess water from hair by squeezing it with a microfiber hair towel or cotton T-shirt.
- Apply your favorite curly hair product (optional) and gently comb it through with your fingers.
- Lay the hair towel or T-shirt flat on your bed.
- Turn your head upside-down, bending over and “piling” your hair on the hair towel or T-shirt. This is called “plopping” and is meant to hold your curls tightly to your scalp for better shape and definition.
- Once you’ve “plopped” your curls around the top of your head, grab the bottom of the hair towel or T-shirt.
- Fold the hair towel or T-shirt so the bottom edge reaches the nape of your neck. The curls should be fully “wrapped” within the hair towel or T-shirt.
- Tie a knot to fasten the top edges of the bottom and top of your hair towel or T-shirt, securing it to your head.
- Tuck the remaining edges under. If you’ve got a hair towel, you can just twist it up as you normally would.
The result should look somewhat like a turban on your head. Afterward, leave the T-shirt or hair towel on until your curls dry. If you like, you can leave it on overnight and be amazed at your stunning curls when you wake up.
The Benefits of Curly Hair Plopping
While the name itself sounds pretty silly, the results of hair plopping are no joke. Most curly girls who have tried this method now swear by it, and you’ll soon be one of them.
Since hair plopping keeps your curls tightly to your head, they can better retain their natural shape. In other words, gravity is on your side with this one.
Plus, by banishing roughly-textured towels from your head, you’re doing the best thing for your follicles and your cuticles. This allows you to have the shiny, defined, and frizz-free hair you never thought you could have.
So, be kind to your curls! They’ll return the love. Give hair plopping a try!
Other Ways to Care for Your Curls
It’s no secret that curls can be moody, fussy, and generally hard to control. If you’re constantly fighting an uphill battle, then you might be struggling harder than you have to. By following a few of our bonus curl care tips, you can give your curls the TLC they deserve.
Here are some other curl care tips to try out:
- Try the coconut oil “Greenhouse Method”: saturate your curls with oil, put on a shower cap, leave overnight, and shampoo in the morning.
- Look for products that are free of sulfates, alcohols, and other ingredients that can dry out your curly hair.
- Make natural hair masks at home with any combination of raw egg, avocado, honey, coconut oil, or castor oil.
- By hair plopping and taking care of your curls, you’re sure to get some beautiful results.
Try Curly Hair Plopping Today
Hair plopping is an easy fix for curls that are misbehaving. Once you’ve mastered the technique, you’ll have shiny, defined, and bouncy curls.
Don’t believe us? Try hair plopping today! Your follicles will never touch a towel again.
For more beauty topics, check out our other blog entries.
